Council housing investment body launches
A new housing investment body first reported by Room151 has launched. The new company, LG Develop, has 14 founding local authorities which will seek to use the collective borrowing vehicle to help them build thousands of new homes. The new body will seek to borrow £800m to redistribute to councils. Others can get involved with a business plan that will allow them to borrow from the vehicle against future rents.

Big cities could raise billions
Think tank Centre for Cities says that the UK’s biggest cities could raise an extra £9bn in revenue each year if they boost their economic performance to match the national average. A review found that Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds currently all perform below the national average.

Pension funds sign off pooled investment venture
Lancashire County Pension Fund (LCPF) and the London Pensions Fund Authority (LPFA) have received board-level approval for plans to create an asset liability management partnership. The funds will pool assets of £10.5bn into a single fund but maintain separate governance structures, while merging investments, liability management and administration. Negotiations with asset managers on fee reduction will now begin as the pair look to save £32m within five years.

Capita appointed to London CIV service contract
Outsourcing firm Capita has been appointed to provide support services to the emerging London LGPS collective investment vehicle. The firm will be paid £200,000 for the contract for a period of 12 months from the start of service delivery. The CIV, which is still in its implementation phase, said that it hopes to be fully operational by this autumn.

Greater Manchester appoints property valuer
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council has appointed Colliers International Property Advisers as valuer for the property portfolio of the Greater Manchester Pension Fund. The contract is worth up to £5m, according to an official release on the website for European tenders.

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LGPS reports bumper average return of 21.4%: Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds produced an average 21.4% return on their investments last year, with three quarters outperforming their benchmarks. The strong returns, revealed in the LGPS… dlvr.it/QTyvSk

Northants financial reporting ‘vague, inconsistent, unclear and lacking details’: Auditors say that the quality and transparency of financial reporting at Northamptonshire County Council has prevented effective decision making. In its interim audit… dlvr.it/QTykBC

LPGS pools urged to sign up to transparency code: A London borough’s pensions chief has called on all Local Government Pension Scheme pools to sign up to a new transparency code designed to help individual funds make better investments.[...] dlvr.it/QTyWyB

Conrad Hall: The lesson for LOBOs from backgammon: Calculating whether LOBOs are a good risk is controversial. Conrad Hall uses lessons drawn from the famous board game to help devise a plan for managing the controversial loans. LOBOs[...] dlvr.it/QTxyGJpic.twitter.com/7dqx6srYcl

Minister calls on LGPS pools to channel more investment into housing: Local government minister Rishi Sunak has encouraged Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) pools to increase their investment in housing. Speaking at the Pensions and Lifetime Savings… dlvr.it/QTpDhNpic.twitter.com/01WSmF3lQa

Clive Heaphy: My first 100 days as CFO at Birmingham City Council: Birmingham’s troubles are well publicised. A little more than three months ago Clive Heaphy took on the job of running the finance department at the city’s council. Here he reveals[...] dlvr.it/QThGNSpic.twitter.com/fsdI5cjlUG

Basingstoke builds housing into investment strategy: A home counties borough council has agreed to amend its property investment strategy to include residential developments. In February, Basingstoke Borough Council approved plans to boost its strategy… dlvr.it/QTBNYl

Board moves to end auditor confusion over LOBOs: Guidance introduced last year on how councils should account for controversial Lender Option Borrower Option (LOBO) loans has been clarified after causing confusion among auditors. A group of audit… dlvr.it/QTB1NF

MPs propose a ban on councils borrowing for commercial property investment: A bill to ban councils borrowing from central government for commercial property investment is to be considered by the House of Commons. Christopher Chope, Conservative MP for… dlvr.it/QT9qnFpic.twitter.com/MGtLH3KVQy

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